American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2021 - 34

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Report Notes Service Jobs Climbing
HOUSTON-Statistics may be starting
to quantify the anecdotal evidence. Citing
preliminary data from the U.S. Bureau
of Labor Statistics, the Energy Workforce
& Technology Council says employment
in the country's oil field services and
equipment sector rose by an estimated
23,015 jobs in March.
The Council adds that routine BLS
revisions trimmed February's count of
job losses to 7,697 from the 10,048 calculated in the initial report. The revised
data also indicates the sector cut 1,322
positions in January 2021. " The sector
has been on a rollercoaster the past year
with a precipitous drop in jobs due to the
pandemic, modest gains in the fourth
quarter of 2020, and more cuts in December, January and February, " the Council says.
It goes on to note that the " Oilfield
Services and Equipment Employment
Report " that it compiles and publishes
monthly estimates a peak of 102,000
pandemic-related job losses. Since then,
the industry has gained back more than
23,000 positions.
That hiring can help the sector begin
to make up ground on its year-over-year
personnel comparison, the Council observes, adding that it collaborated with
researchers from the Hobby School of

Public Affairs at the University of Houston
to find that BLS data estimates the number
of people in U.S. oil field service sector
jobs fell from 691,866 in March 2020 to
628,362 in March 2021, a decline of
9.2%. Losses were heaviest in April,
when the sector shed 57,294 jobs, which
the Council says is the largest one-month
total since at least 2013.
According to the Council, March's
new employees represent annualized
wages of approximately $2.6 billion. Oil
field service sector employment grew
3.8% in the month as companies brought
more rigs on line to begin boosting production as more people are vaccinated
and demand rises.
It says oil field service job losses
since February 2020 are estimated to be
heaviest in leading production provinces
Texas and Louisiana. Citing BLS data,
the Council says the states hit hardest
by pandemic-related oil field service job
losses are:
· Texas, with 39,000;
· Louisiana, with 6,700;
· Oklahoma, with 6,100;
· Colorado, with 3,200;
· New Mexico, with 3,000;
· California, with 2,900;
· Pennsylvania, with 2,800;
· North Dakota, with 2,500;

· Wyoming, with 1,900;
· Ohio, with 1,300;
· Alaska, with 1,200; and
· West Virginia, with 1,200.
According to the Council, oil field
service employment is estimated by analyzing published BLS data and covers
the economic activities of oil field service
companies, which include oil and gas
extraction, construction and manufacturing.
Total employment is estimated using the
" Quarterly Census of Employment and
Wages, " published by BLS, and the jobs
data BLS reports monthly.
As the national trade association for
the oil field services and equipment
sector, the Council notes it represents
more than 600,000 jobs in the technology-driven energy value chain, with
more than 600 member companies that
are involved in oil field equipment manufacturing, drilling, well completions,
well services, pressure pumping, renewable energy technology and servicing,
geothermal development, and more.
" Losing the innovative men and women
who comprise the oil field service sector
jeopardizes development of the innovative technologies that increase efficiency,
improve environmental performance and
reduce greenhouse gas emissions, " the
Council warns.
❒

COVID-19 IMPACT ON OFS SECTOR

d
d
d
d
d
d
dTOTAL OFS JOBS MONTHLY VS. LAST YEAR
⛅⚐⃄
102,736

800,000

750,000

PANDEMIC
JOBS LOST
700,000

$15.4 billion
Estimated annual
600,000
wages decline
APR19 781,863 MAY19 785,106 JUN 9 786,537
due to the pandemic
APR20 634,572

MAY20 619,860 JUN20 614,484

JUL19 783,179 AUG19 781,946 SEP19 772,403 OCT19 766,301 NOV19 747,466 DEC19 783,861 JAN20 705,481 FEB20 706,528
JUL20 609,696 AUG20 604,831 SEP20 606,745 OCT20 612,462 NOV20 616,113 DEC20 614,366 JAN21 613,044 FEB21 605,347

2019

MAR20 691,866
MAR21 628,362

2020/21

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows hiring in the U.S. oil field service sector jumped significantly in March, notes the Energy
Workforce & Technology Council. However, it says, the industry has much rebuilding to do thanks to the historic challenges associated
with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Energy Workforce & Technology Council, University of Houston, Bureau of Labor Statistics

34 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

American Oil and Gas Reporter - April 2021

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